Heterogeneous Hunter-Gatherer and Steppe-Related Ancestries in Late Neolithic and Bell Beaker Genomes from Present-Day France.

The transition from the Late Neolithic to the Bronze Age has witnessed important population and societal changes in western Europe. These include massive genomic contributions of pastoralist herders originating from the Pontic-Caspian steppes into local populations, resulting from complex interactions between collapsing hunter-gatherers and expanding farmers of Anatolian ancestry. This transition is documented through extensive ancient genomic data from present-day Britain, Ireland, Iberia, Mediterranean islands, and Germany.

Analysis of 5000 year-old human teeth using optimized large-scale and targeted proteomics approaches for detection of sex-specific peptides.

The study demonstrates the high potential of MS-based proteomics coupled to an iterative database search strategy for the in-depth investigation of ancient proteomes. An efficient targeted PRM MS-based approach, although limited to the detection of a single pair of sex-specific amelogenin peptides, allowed confirming the sex of individuals in ancient dental remains, an essential information for paleoanthropologists facing the issue of sex determination and dimorphism.

The antiquity of the spondyloarthritides: Presentation of one of the oldest Neolithic cases in Western Europe.

In humans, little is yet known about the origins of the inflammatory rheumatisms of the spondyloarthritides group, especially regarding the period of their emergence. However, a better knowledge of their history would help to clarify their aetiology. We report a paleopathological case of European origin, dated from the late Neolithic (3621-3023 cal BC), consisting of an isolated vertebral block combining erosion, ossification and severe anterior and posterior ankylosis.

A geometric morphometric approach to the study of variation of shovel-shaped incisors.

Objectives: The scoring and analysis of dental nonmetric traits are predominantly accomplished by using the Arizona State University Dental Anthropology System (ASUDAS), a standard protocol based on strict definitions and three-dimensional dental plaques. However, visual scoring, even when controlled by strict definitions of features, visual reference, and the experience of the observer, includes an unavoidable part of subjectivity. In this methodological contribution, we propose a new quantitative geometric morphometric approach to quickly and efficiently assess the variation of shoveling in modern human maxillary central incisors (UI1).

A History of Caries in the Middle Ages: Characteristics and Cultural Profiles.

In paleopathology, since the mid-1960s, caries and its characteristics have been studied on medieval teeth by many different teams in Europe, particularly in relation to the dietary and cultural habits of the populations concerned. The aims of this article are to propose a global study of caries within European medieval populations through various parameters such as prevalence, distribution, location, gender, and diet.

A panorama of tooth wear during the medieval period.

Tooth wear is a natural phenomenon and a universal occurrence that has existed from the origin of humankind and depends on the way of life, especially diet. Tooth wear was very serious in ancient populations up to the medieval period. The aim of this paper is to present a global view of tooth wear in medieval times in Europe through different parameters: scoring systems, quantity and direction of wear, gender, differences between maxilla and mandible, relations with diet, caries, tooth malpositions and age.